To Love a Fool
by Birdgirl90
Summary: The more Jester watches Jane and Gunther interact, the more he falls to pieces. Can Jane help ease his fears? One-shot, very cute. JaneXJester


Hi everyone reading this! I am Birdgirl90 and here is my first fanfic on . I am very pleased to say the least. This story is the first thing of fanfiction that I have written in years, so please be warned. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own Jane and the Dragon, although it amazing and I kinda wish I did. *sigh* Oh well. At least I can write about it, right?

Jester was having a rather frustrating day. He sat on the castle wall with his lute, contemplating as he played one meloncholy chord after another.

All morning long he had had to watch Jane and Gunther spar in the training yard. Normally this would have been an enjoyable thing (anytime Jester could watch Jane made him happy, if he was being honest with himself) except for the fact that things had definately been changing between the way Jane and Gunther interacted. Maybe not so much on Jane's end, but it was pretty obvious, to Jester at least, that Gunther like Jane more than just in the respect of a rival.

Not that Jester could blame him. Over the years, Jane had grown into a beautiful young woman - her firey hair longer but still unkempt, her emerald eyes quick and clever as always, and her figure - Jester shook his head. These were avenues he should not be going down. But it was true. And to top it off, Jane's wit was still as sharp as ever, as was her tongue. Jester had loved these things in Jane for years. In fact, he had loved her for as long as he could remember. Maybe not always in the romantic sense, but as the years passed, it had turned from an innocent friendship love into a deeper passion that burned within him until it threatened to consume all that he had and was.

And apparently so did Gunther, with the way he looked at Jane in the training yard and from afar throughout the day.

Jester threw his lute aside with disgust at the thought, a frown on his face. What did Gunther have that he didn't? Apart from dashing good looks, that was. And strength. Oh, and skill in the arena, and wealth and dignity... Jester shook his head sadly, the bells on his hat softly echoing his mood. He picked up his lute one more time as he fought the moisture that brimmed in his powder grey eyes.

Of course Jane would choose Gunther over him if it came to it. Who could love a fool, especially when given the choice?

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Jane wandered through the deepening dusk, searching for Jester. She had gone through the entire day without seeing any sign of his floppy blue hat or hearing any of his humorous ballads and she was growing worried. It was unusual for him to not be around her and she was missing his company more than she could explain. " Jester!" she called, her voice sailing into the night. " Jester!"

Nothing but silence. Jane looked at the ground, feeling like a failure. The night was becoming too heavy to stay out any longer. She had no choice but to turn in for the night and trust that Jester was safe, wherever he was. Just when she had decided to climb the stairs to her room, she heard a deep sigh and a tinkling of bells. Whipping her head up, Jane saw a dejected Jester standing by the castle wall, gazing absent-mindedly out into the clear night.

"Jester!"

As much as Jester really wanted to be alone and as much as he really did not want to see Jane right now, he still could not stop from reacting to her voice. He lifted his head slowly and turned to see Jane's flaming hair bouncing his way. She came and stood next to him, resting her arms against the castle wall in a fashion similar to his, her green eyes blazing into his very soul. "Jane," Jester said, not being able to hold her gaze.

"Jester, where have you been all day? I have looked for you everywhere - the kitchen, the courtyard, the garden, even the stables!" Jane threw her arms up in an exasperated gesture that Jester couldn't help but smile a tiny bit at. If Jane was good at anything, it was over-exaggerations. "It's like you fell off the face of the earth!"

Jester shook his head. "No Jane, I did not fall off the earth. I was just giving you...space." He turned and gazed once more out onto Rake's garden.

"Space?" Jane sounded surprised.

Without turning, Jester nodded. "Yes, Jane, space. So that you and Gunther could, you know, have some...I don't know...privacy? So that you could..." He took a deep breath. "So that you could be alone together." Saying it aloud made the stabbing in his heart more intense and all at once he wanted nothing more than to go to bed and never come out.

"You fool." The words were a mere whisper and Jester turned in surprise. Jane was looking at him with a hint of a smile on her lips, her eyes soft. "Did I ever say that I wanted to be alone with Gunther?"

Jester was caught off guard; this was not what he had expected. " Well, no, I mean, at least not-"

"And did I ever say that I liked him as anything other than my sparring partner?"

"No..."

Jane's eyes seemed to grow softer. "And who did I just spend hours looking for when I would have liked to have gone to bed?"

Jester's stomach did a flop. "Me," he whispered, almost to himself.

Jane nodded. "Jester, my decision was made before I knew I had made it. It will always be you, Jester. Always."

Jester's heart flew to his throat and he suddenly felt light, like his whole being was full of buttery sunshine. Without thinking, he wrapped his arms around Jane and kissed her softly on the lips, even more happy (if that was even possible) when she returned the kiss with a passion. Everything was right for once in his world.

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Down in the garden, unseen to the couple above, Gunther sat alone with his knees against his chest. "Finally," he muttered, turning away as his heart broke cleanly in half. For while it pained him in a way that he was unsure could be fixed, it was clearly obvious to him, at least, that he never had a leg to stand on against the jester in the matters of the woman they both loved.

Aww, wasn't that so cute?? I just love the concept and all of the characters involved. I know it sounds really cheesy, but if you like it, could you review? And if you want to see more - I know it will keep me motivated. Thanks so much and I hope you enjoyed it!


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